Search This Blog

The Dark Lord's Demise

One person I have great respect for is Dr. John White. He was a man of compassion and wisdom--a psychiatrist who preached most Sundays at the church I attended in the 1970s. His spiritual journey was one that has greatly inspired me.

A prolific writer, at the request of his children, he wrote a series of fantasy novels unabashedly mimicking "The Chronicles of Narnia" called "The Archives of Anthropos." The stories begin in Winnipeg but the children are transported to another world, Anthropos, where they have a variety of experiences with spiritual insight for the reader. I think my favourite is Quest for the King because of the accurate and helpful description of spiritual warfare.

Dr. White was working on a final book for the series before his death. Friends of his generously took on the project of finishing The Dark Lord's Demise on his behalf. I'm disappointed. It wasn't as meaty as Quest for the King. I saw a theme about the dangers of some New Age spiritual ideas develop part way through the book that wasn't brought to a satisfactory conclusion. Even though it's a book for children, there could have been more depth and a more thorough examination of some of the questions raised. Betty's character, for instance, wasn't adequately developed and her movement from the side of Lord Lunacy (Satan) to that of Gaal (Jesus) didn't adequately show the struggle it must have been for her. The transition was too flat.

Still, the story asks some good questions. Who is Jesus? What is the difference between believing that he is always present and believing that he is in all things and in fact is all things? What does believing in Jesus actually mean? Is it sufficient to believe that he exists or is something else needed?

Despite my disappointment in this final book of the series, I highly recommend the series to you, especially Quest for the King.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

I'm married (35 years in December 2008) with four grown sons. I love my city (Winnipeg) and my country (Canada) and promote them both to whoever will listen. God (through Jesus Christ) is the biggest part of my life. I am learning to let him take control of all areas--though I do better at this some times more than others.

I have written a book that's recently been published about part of my journey with God. In it I tell how God confronted me with the same-sex attraction issues I've struggled with all my adult life and how he led me through them to a deeper and more meaningful relationship with him. God is amazing—his forgiveness, his love, his movement in our lives when we allow him and so much more. I suspect God will never run out of things to teach me or ways to make me grow and that’s a good thing (though often very painful).

I suppose I can say that what gives me the greatest pleasure in life is telling others about…

If you have read the book, I would love to hear your thoughts on it. You may e-mail me at debbiehaughland@gmail.com or post them in the comments section below.

A Real Testimony I finished your book. A real testimony to what God does for us.Leona March 3, 2009 I Had Tears Coming

I sat down to read it about a week later and ended up finishing it the same night. At first I admit I was a little bored and thought that the whole book was about a battle all in your mind, but as I continued reading this creeping thought came over me of a different...struggle in my own life, that I would never in my right mind have shared with anyone accept maybe God. I've mentioned your book to a few people because it stirs up age-old controversies that I have myself argued and wondered about, namely about whether or not homosexuality can be cured or just managed like alcoholism--you just have to stay away from temptation. I noticed at the end of your book that your struggle story …